2-11-16 Coming to Know Christ

beholdthelamb

But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen.

2 Peter 3:18 KJV

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If you would be like Jesus know Him well

Through study of the scriptures every day,

And feel His spirit with you as you dwell

Upon the word of God and as you pray.

But words are merely symbols on a page

Until they come alive within the heart.

God’s gifts of grace release them from their cage:

With faith and hope and love does grace impart.

The knowledge of our Lord and Savior grows

As all these gifts of grace mature and thrive.

You come to be more like Christ and it shows;

The things you say and do proves He’s alive.

In knowledge and in grace your soul implores,

To Jesus be the glory evermore!

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REMEMBER: Commit yourself to studying the scriptures daily if you desire to know Christ.

8-10-15 Intercession

threshing floor

31 And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat:

32 But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.

Luke 22:31-32 KJV

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The enemy of God wants you to fail;

He wants to drag you ‘cross the threshing floor.

He wants you to deny the Lord and wail,

To lose your faith and bother him no more.

If you’re a child of God you’re valuable,

For you can share the gospel of the Lord.

If Satan makes you unapproachable,

You’re one more Christian that can be ignored.

But Jesus wants your faith to grow and thrive,

So you can thwart the Devil in his plan.

Your strength will help Christ bring more souls alive,

Help lift your brethren from the sifting pan.

Christ prays for you this moment out of love,

That your faith will not fail, but rise above

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sonnet #432

5-31-15 All For One – Part One

painting by Janet McKensie

8 For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit;

9 To another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit;

10 To another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues:

11 But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will.

12 For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ.

1 Corinthians 12:8-12 KJV

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When you are saved by Christ’s atoning blood,

You then become much more than family;

The Spirit enters you just like a flood

And works on you uniquely by degree.

Just as the body is comprised of parts,

Each part designed to function for the whole,

Yet none can long survive when pulled apart

But thrives with all the others in their role.

The Holy Spirit knows your aptitude

And fashions you to serve in harmony.

It may not always be what you pursued

Before you came to Christ and was set free.

The gift the Spirit lays upon your heart

You’ll find in time was perfect from the start.

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sonnet #375

2-7-15 Thrive

cosmic hourglass

Although the world around you is a mess

And everyone agrees it won’t last long

Before it all collapses in distress,

Because you are a child of God stand strong.

You live by faith so ready for the day

When you shall see the Lord in glory shown,

That even though the world will fall away

You praise the name of Jesus on His throne!

The body you inhabit soon must die,

Just like the universe so vast and grand,

But there is more to you than meets the eye

For you belong to He who will withstand.

Conduct yourself as one who will survive;

Beyond the mortal realm your soul shall thrive.

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Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved,

what manner of persons ought ye to be

in all holy conversation and godliness

2 Peter 3:11 KJV

Temper, Temper

temper

If you can’t curb your temper or your tongue

How can you be entrusted with the Word?

The devil will provoke you with his dung

Until you lose control with anger stirred.

You can’t control what others say and do,

And none can make you feel a certain way.

With prayer and discipline you can get to

Restraint in what you do and what you say.

Increase your love for God until it glows,

Til humbleness replaces selfish ways.

The spirit of the Lord both thrives and grows

Within an attitude of faith and praise.

Compassion cools the fire before it burns,

And patience settles in when temper turns.

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He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty;

and he that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city.

Proverbs 16:32 KJV